By Denise Clarke, Staff Reporter
Gore
"Me say fi hol' back crime and try cut its speed
Police han' alone caan wuk, a two hand we need,
A two han' we need, an a hope its agreed,
Cause if we no do dat, crime kill off we breed"
WESTERN BUREAU:
THE WORDS spoken by Corporal Balfour Gore represent a cry for help from the Police Force for citizens to become more involved in fighting crime.
As a 14-year member of the force, Corporal Gore's front line view of crime and violence in the country has provided fuel for his thought-provoking poems. The poem, 'Hol' Back Crime', goes as far as to dare members of the public to stop criticising the police, and instead work with them for a crime-free society.
'What is a gun, fi a man a get glue pon?; what is drugs fi a man a get hook pon?' comes from another poem that Corporal Gore has 'written'. However, the truth is that although he is the author of these poems, he has never actually put pen to paper and written them down. He conjures them up line by line, and recites them in his mind, until he is ready to express them verbally.
"Not writing it down gives me the opportunity to say it more and practice it more and that is what I enjoy," he explained.
As head of the Police Community Relations Branch in St. James, Corporal Gore regularly gives lectures to the schools on topics such as drugs, guns, and social ills. The poems, therefore, are not only a colourful medium for him to express his thoughts, but also serve as a conduit for him to get the message across to the youth.
"You can't go into the schools and just be talking straight, because their attention span is short so you need to be creative. We have to use a form that the youth gravitate to and I think the deejay art form and the dub poet art form are very influential," he said.
While Corporal Gore admits he is not a Christian nor aligned to any denomination, he says a 'spirituality', rooted into him by his grandparents who raised him, guides him to go way beyond the call of duty, and offer his ears to those who need to talk and advice for those who will listen.
"I see myself as a part of every one of these things, so I don't have a problem sharing with a Methodist or a Moravian because I see only one God," Mr. Gore explained.
FIRST IMPRESSIONS
He said when he was growing up, his first impressions of the police were of them carting people off to jail. However, after being rejected by the army because of a fractured toe, and wanting to escape a life of poverty, he turned to the Police Force. Now, 14 years later, Corporal Gore has earned a reputation as not only a dedicated police officer, but also as a counsellor and mediator.
A typical day could start with a three-hour mediation session, and persons coming in for impromptu counselling on domestic issues.
"When people come to see me, I am secondary to them. I see myself as a humanitarian," said Corporal Gore.
His words come back to his vision, of seeing the public join in the fight against crime the results of which, according to his poem, will be highly successful.
'Unno say we getting pay to fight crime, but cho, dat a de least
If unno join de fight wid we, unno get everlasting peace
Imagine two million civilian and ten thousand police
Instantly de crime way a gwaan it would haffi cease'.
